Egypt’s Mubarak warns entire Mideast peace process could collapse

By Amos Harel and Eli Ashkenazi, Haaretz Correspondents, and Haaretz Service

Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, whose Arab country was the first to sign a peace treaty with Israel, warned Monday that the entire Middle East peace process could collapse because of Israel’s fighting in Lebanon.

“Egypt, which triggered the peace process, warns of the consequences of its collapse,” Mubarak said in a nationwide televised statement. “The Israeli aggression undermines the opportunities to continue it.”

He added: “There is an urgent need for an unconditional cease-fire which would pave the way for international efforts to end the crisis and deal with its consequences.”

Mubarak is under domestic fire from opposition groups for his refusal to revoke Egypt’s 1979 peace treaty with Israel. His statement came a day after Israel’s deadliest attack on Lebanon since fighting broke out July 12 between Israeli forces and Hezbollah guerrillas. The air strike Sunday on the southern Lebanese village of Qana killed at least 56 people – more than half of them children – and sparked outrage across the Arab world.

Mubarak said Monday he had told Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit to increase Egypt’s diplomatic endeavors to defuse the crisis.

And, of course, on the Israeli side:

Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said Monday evening that there would be no cease-fire in the coming days, despite a 48-hour halt in Israel Air Force activity in Lebanon.

“The fighting continues. There is no ceasefire and there will not be any ceasefire in the coming days,” Olmert said in an address to the nation from Tel Aviv. He said the offensive in southern Lebanon would end when the rockets fired by Hezbollah cease and the two Israel Defense Forces soldiers abducted on July 12 are returned.

“We will stop the war when the [rocket] threat is removed…, our captive soldiers return home in peace, and you are able to live in safety and security,” Olmert said, addressing the mayors of northern towns.

He also warned that Israel still faced “no small number of days of fighting.”

“We should be ready for pain, tears and blood,” he said. “Missiles and rockets will still land in Israel in the coming days.”

Chief Rabbi Yona Metzger has initiated a website for worldwide prayers on behalf of the wounded, abducted and fighting Israeli soldiers. Many acts of kindness are being done on their behalf as well.

On Rabbi Metzger’s site, www.tfila.org.il, Jews from all over the world are signing up (53,106 as of writing this) to take part in a joint prayer service scheduled for this Tuesday night at 7 PM (12 noon New York time).

These days, when we are “between the straits”, and in these desperate hours, our brothers Sons of Israel in the State of Israel face hard and murderous times from our enemies and those who are up to destroy us.

While in the battle front our brave soldiers in the Israeli Defense Forces risk their lives in the air and sea to repel those who turn upon us, and defend our people and the cities in Israel.

I call upon our Jewish brothers in the Diaspora, wherever they are, to pray for the well-being of our soldiers and their success this Tuesday, for the recovery of the wounded, and the return of the captives to the loving arms of their families all safe and sound. —Rabbi Yona Metzger

Is there a category for world-wide prayer sites at the Webbys? Hmmm better speak with Tiffany!

Pictures smuggled out of Lebanon prove it!

Adelaide Now in Australia reports the following:

A stream of images, obtained exclusively by the News Ltd, depicts how the extremists are using high-density residential areas as launch pads for rockets and heavy calibre weapons… Dressed in civilian clothing so they can quickly melt back into suburbia, the fighters carrying automatic assault rifles ride in on trucks laden with cannons… Images and footage of Hezbollah activities taken by local newspapers and TV crews are routinely seized by the group’s fighters at road blocks… But in our images, taken clandestinely, a group of fighters are preparing to fire truck-mounted anti-aircraft gun just metres from an apartment block with sheets drying on the balcony.

The reporter witnessed brave Hizballah fighters in action:

“Hezbollah came in to launch their rockets, then within minutes the area was blasted by Israeli jets,” he said… “Until the Hezbollah fighters arrived, it had not been touched by the Israelis. Then it was totally devastated… “After the attacks they didn’t even allow the ambulances or the Lebanese Army to come in until they had cleaned the area, removing their rockets and hiding other evidence… “Two innocent people died in that incident but it was so lucky it was not more… `The people there were horrified and disgusted at what Hezbollah were doing.” … The fighters used trucks, driven into residential areas, as launch pads for the rockets, he said.

What The F… Hizballah purposely endangering innocent civilians?? And what of that terrible attack in Qana? Qana, a village in South Lebanon from which over 150 rockets had been fired at Israel, was in the news today after it was reported that 54 27 60 civilians had been killed when a building, hit by Israeli rockets after a barrage of Katyushas was fired from there, collapsed. The Jerusalem Post however is reporting that the last Israeli rocket was fired at 1 am and that the building collapsed at 8 am. Speculation is that Hizballah ordinance stored in the residential building exploded or something happened in the 7 hour gap that wasn’t caused by Israelis. Might this be another Hizbollywood production? Stay tuned, we’ll find out.

In other news, moments ago, Fox News reported that Israel has agreed to either a 24 or 48 hour cease fire. Already the artillery in the north is quiet and the understanding is that the ceasefire is to allow residents of Southern Lebanon to escape and for humanitarian aid to reach those who need it. Israel also wishes to investigate the impact of the rocket war thus far. We’ll keep you updated as more reports come in.

UPDATE: CNN reports the following with respect to the ceasefire:

Israel has agreed to suspend airstrikes on southern Lebanon for 48 hours to investigate a Sunday airstrike that killed more than 60 people in Qana, Lebanon, a U.S. State Department spokesman said… Spokesman Adam Ereli said the Israelis reserve the right to take action against targets preparing attacks against it during the 48-hour period, but the bombing halt should “significantly speed and improve the flow of humanitarian aid.” Israeli officials also agreed to allow safe passage for 24 hours for residents of southern Lebanon to leave the region.

Thanks to Howard F. for the heads up on the Adelaide Now report. He notes that it is an Australian Newspaper that is not particularly known for its pro-Israel stance.

Sometimes I feel like Jewlicious should have its own Natalie Portman category. Or maybe a separate category for “actjewesses,” or “Jewspianettes,” or “thespiJewesses” or something like that, so we’d have a designated place for stories like this one, in which Hebrew homegirls Nat and Scarlett team up to make the dreams of Jewish dudes everywhere come true. Well, at least the dreams of all Jewish dudes dreaming about a BBC biopic of Anne Boleyn.

Shooting begins in October; Natalie plays the doomed Anne, who is (sorry to ruin the ending, kids) decapitated after being tried for incest and adultery, and Scarlett plays younger sister Mary. Rounding out the cast is Hulk/Trojan/Israeli Mossad Agent Eric Bana.

First Nat shaved her head on-camera for a scene in some sci fi movie (which I didn’t see and have since totally forgot the title of). Now this movie calls for decapitation. Let’s hope she’s not a Method actress when it comes to this particular role.

As it says in the Talmud: nichnas yayin, yotzie sod (Lit. in goes wine and out come secrets.)

Mel Gibson got a little too much of the Passion Punch, getting busted driving like Mad Max in Malibu this past week. According to reports in The Zone, Gibson launched into an anti-Semitic Jew bashing drunken tirade at the arresting officers. But this was not released to the public. However, TMZ did some snooping and put online a PDF of the arrest report. While not too clear, one can read some of Gibson’s finer quotes:

“F*****g Jews… The Jews are responsible for all the wars in the world.” Gibson then asked the deputy, “Are you a Jew?”

Meanwhile, Gibson released an apology today:

I acted like a person completely out of control when I was arrested, and said things that I do not believe to be true and which are despicable. I am deeply ashamed of everything I said. Also, I take this opportunity to apologize to the deputies involved for my belligerent behavior.

While some AA classes may help wean him off the booze, it is going to take some serious heart 2 heart chats with Rabbi Yo to get him off the anti-Semite bandwagon.

UPDATE: The gunman forced his way through a security door by holding a gun to a 13-year-old girl’s head, the police chief said Saturday. Once inside, police say, Naveed Afzal Haq opened fire with two semiautomatic pistols he had purchased days before. He has been pulled over by police hours before the shooting for a traffic related cause. Apparently Seattle’s finest didn’t see the guns as he was caught speeding.

Fresh from Seattle, a lunatic kills opens fire at the Jewish Federation. KOMO News Reports:

SEATTLE – One person was killed and five other people were wounded by gunshots Friday afternoon at the Jewish Federation of Greater Seattle and one person was arrested, police said….

[A] witness says the gunman then walked into the Jewish Center and said he was a Muslim-American and he was very upset about what was going on in Israel. He then pulled out a gun and started shooting, the witnesses said….

Police say they believe the gunman was acting alone and not part of any larger organization.

The FBI says on July 21 and 26, the Seattle office sent general warnings to local law enforcement agencies to be on heightened alert around Jewish-related buildings given the hostilities in the Middle East.

No losses for Israel today; 26 Hizbullah terrorists killed. This took place in a battle at Bint Jbail where Israel lost 8 fine young men the other day including Ro’i Klein who threw himself on a grenade to save his soldiers (he was the commanding officer of the company). Let’s hope for a safe shabbat for Israel’s forces.

Shabbat shalom to all.

(photo of Bat Yam Sela beach from AP via Jerusalem Post)

That EST stands for Eastern Standard Time. Or maybe for ESTher, who’s posting this in what may be an encroachment on the middle’s regular Shabbat shalom posts. So call it an East Coast Shabbat greeting, and the middle can still do his post from another time zone.

But I also wanted to post this photo in honor of the last five weeks I spent in Israel having so many wonderful experiences: from the Oranim birthright bus (with special Jewlicious Shabbat programming) to the ROI120 conference and its amazing energy; from Kikar Zion to Rehavia to Emek Refaim; from the concert series at Mishkenot Sha’ananim to the Wine Festival, and from hotel rooms to all the couches I called home for two- or three- day or week stretches. I want to thank the bloggers and friends from many countries who helped me find my way as a freelancer moonlighting in the Holy Land, and to tell them that I hope to see them soon.

And of course, I also post this picture in expression of my wholehearted hope for peace and prayer for the well-being of the Israeli people.

Shabbat shalom from the tri-state area…

Nidfok otchah inshallah

More Youtube fun. This music video is in Hebrew but it does have English subtitles. I know I shouldn’t love it, but I do anyway. So sue me.

Thanks to Jewlicious reader Abu Elvis for the heads up.

Pallywood created staged media events which worked wonders for the Pally caust. Now we have Hizbollywood, the manipulation of the media outlets to acheive Hizbollah aims. Amazingly, it is Anderson Cooper, Sexiest Man Alive and CNN reporter who has blown the cover on Hizbollywood.

NewsBusters reports:

Cooper exposed for CNN viewers that the sight of speeding ambulances, sirens blaring, was just a phony play staged by Hezbollah: “One by one, they’ve been told to turn on their sirens and zoom off so that all the photographers here can get shots of ambulances rushing off to treat civilians….These ambulances aren’t responding to any new bombings. The sirens are strictly for effect.”

For the record… NPR is completely off the rocker and eats up Hizbollywood with a passion.

Because even a depraved terrorist leader who is a little bitch to Syria and Iran and who hides behind innocent Lebanese women and children, needs a little love sometimes…

From Mentalblog by Tzemach Atlas.

Also from Abaleboosteh.

This is a painful post to write.

The Israeli papers have only hinted at it but AP is reporting 12 to 14 dead soldiers and another 25 injured and on their way to hospitals.

UPDATE: Israeli papers are now reporting 9 dead, 3 severely injured and another 24 injured.

Anybody want to talk about disproportionate attacks right now? It’s clear that they weren’t disproportionate if Hizbullah remains this capable after nearly two weeks of war. By the way, they have launched 1400 rockets into Israel as of now and have threatened Netanyah next. Hitting Netanyah would require missiles with 100 mile range.

A couple of weeks ago, I wrote about the initial failures by Halutz’s IDF that led to this war. I wrote with the hope that the IDF would show those to be anomalies and Halutz would be vindicated. As of now it seems that rather than the IDF pushing Hizbullah into a corner, it is Hizbullah killing Israel’s young men. The causes are not hard to figure out: poor planning, poor intelligence, poor execution or a combination of those. My guess is that poor execution is the least problem, if it is one at all. That leaves the other two issues. The IDF seems unprepared for this adversary and the type of fight in which they are engaged.

(more…)

War turns every Israeli into an insatiable news junkie and professional political analyst and strategist. Especially if they happen to be older Mizrachi gentlemen in our nation’s many fine hummus establishments, who tend to begin every sentence with “I’ll tell you, I was in Yom Kippur, and…” I’m actually fairly convinced that if you selected any random older Mizrachi gentlemen from any random hummusiyya, this war would be over tomorrow in our favor, but I digress.

If you read the news as obsessively as Israelis do, you’re bound to notice some other random stories in between all the missiles and bombs falling. So this week I noticed that in Ireland, they found a medieval book of Psalms from between the years 800 and 1000 perfectly preserved in a bog. Bog, by the way, is a great word. Say it. Bog. They found the book open to a page containing Psalm 83. Now, I’m not one to put stock in signs from above or anything, and I figure if God really wanted to tell us something he could write in flaming letters in the sky and not hide it in a bog in Ireland, but Psalm 83 is an interesting psalm…

O God, keep not your silence; hold not your peace, and be not still, O God.
For your enemies are in an uproar; and those that hate you have lifted up their heads.
They hold crafty converse against your people, and take counsel against your treasured ones.
They have said: ‘Come, and let us cut them off from being a nation; that the name of Israel may be no more in remembrance.’
For they have consulted together with one consent; against you do they make a covenant;
The tents of Edom and the Ishmaelites; Moab, and the Hagrites;
Gebal, and Ammon, and Amalek; Philistia with the inhabitants of Tyre;
Assyria also is joined with them; they have been an arm to the children of Lot. Selah.

There’s some more about divine retribution and such, with some highly recommended metaphors about thistles and fire. So is the man upstairs sending us an ancient message suited to our difficult times, or was it just a serendipitous coincidence dug up in an Irish bog? Who cares? The important thing to is to remember that this shit has been going on without end for thousands of years, and in the end, there is only one common thread: us. Our enemies are in an uproar, those that hate us lift up their heads to cut us off from being a nation, as they have for thousands of years, but we’re still here. So don’t let that pansy Nasrallah get to you – in a few hundred years, nobody will remember Hizbullah, but something tells me you’ll still be able to discuss the pressing matters of the day in an Israeli hummusiyya.

Informative NY Times article.

“Never before in history has a terrorist organization had such state-ofthe-art military equipment,” from medium-range rockets and laser-guided antitank missiles to well-designed explosive mines that can cripple an advanced tank, General Amidror said.

At the same time, Hezbollah has no armor or easily visible storehouses or logistics lines, the Israelis say, and its members live among the civilian population of southern Lebanon, storing their weaponry in civilian buildings.

That is why Israel’s top commanders say this operation may take many weeks.

(more…)

A nice antidote to all this war stuff just hit the news stands, namely the latest issue of Atlanta Jewish Life. Standouts include the AJL Hotlist featuring an interview with Safed’s own Havi Mond (pictured above), the world’s only known Orthodox Supermodel:

Mond says that when she was starting out, her agency would groan over her adamant decision to stick to her religious principles not to work on the Sabbath or holidays, wincing, “‘Oooh, this gig is a really good job for your career,’ but now they just know: ‘Havi can’t work Fridays, Saturdays — those dates are no good,’ telling clients, ‘If you want her, you have to change them.’ They understand now,” she says… “It all adds to the intrigue” surrounding Mond, notes French Connection’s Creative Director Alisa Marks.

Hot Orthodox Supermodels? Clearly Atlanta Jewish Life is waaay too cool for Atlanta! Oh and while you’re visiting the site, you may also want to check out this essay titled Field Trips from the Edge written by some dude about his recent experiences as a birthright israel madrich.

OK, OK… that was me talking about our recent Jewlicious / Oranim trip. Yes, sometimes I do kick it old skool and lower myself to writing for analogue media. Sorry trees! But now maybe Havi Mond will have read my article? Surely an invite to one of her rollicking London Shabbat dinners will soon follow?

Cameron Brown writes in the Jerusalem Post:

When Hizbullah poured gasoline onto the fire by attacking soldiers on the country’s northern border with Lebanon, the sentiment became absolute: Unilateral withdrawals have only weakened the country’s deterrence and undermined the security of the state.

Yet, the last week in particular has demonstrated that these unilateral withdrawals have not been all bad. By withdrawing to an internationally recognized border in both instances, Israel has basically eliminated any self-doubt about the legitimacy of its right to use force – even overwhelming force – when attacked. No longer does half the country wonder if we could have avoided bloodshed by “ending the occupation.” Instead, the country’s citizens are as united as ever in their determination to repel and punish those who attack us, even if it means bearing the brunt of hundreds of missile attacks in the process.

In short, by unifying the ranks and eliminating self-doubt, withdrawing to recognized borders has in many ways actually bolstered Israel’s core security.

He then adds:

ALL THIS IS not to suggest that the opponents of these withdrawals were entirely mistaken either. As many claimed at the time of the Gaza withdrawal, if one listens to what is being said in the Arab and Muslim world, it is undeniable that the lesson drawn from Israel’s unilateral withdrawal from Lebanon has been that violence against Israel may yet prove effective.

While some, like Fatah’s Marwan Barghouti, thought in terms of using violence to force the country to withdraw from Gaza and the West Bank, others like Hamas and Hizbullah became emboldened in their belief that through the interminable use of brutal violence, they could one day even cause the country to cease to exist.

Hassan Nasrallah, the charismatic leader of Hizbullah, in particular has often argued that Israel’s citizens are fatigued, and that the country’s unwillingness to suffer casualties makes its technologically superior military just a paper tiger.

It was this mistaken understanding on the part of Hizbullah and Hamas about why Israel withdrew from Lebanon and Gaza that underlay their strategic miscalculations and led them to kidnap IDF soldiers.

In other words, the Right is correct when it says these withdrawals created the atmosphere which led to the current fighting.

But his point?

Given the way in which Israelis are responding to this war, it seems that we underestimated exactly how important it is to have a clear conscience.

Sure, sure, I write for free for fun and pleasure ( ) but others get paid to come up with this stuff which you, dear reader, get to see here first.

Albert Einstein’s stepdaughter Margot Einstein bequeathed some of her step-father’s personal papers to Hebrew University on the condition that they be sealed for 20 years after her death. She passed away in July of 1986 and sure enough, 20 years later, the Hebrew University made these papers public.

And what new things have we learnt about this great scientific genius? Well, for starters, we learn that he wasn’t a great financial genius, having pissed away most of his Nobel Prize money on bond investments that got wiped out thanks to the great depression.

We also learn that little Albert was quite the ladies’ man. Married twice, the papers reveal that Einstein also had a number of mistresses. Go figure! I mean, when you think “gallavanter,” the image of Albert Einsten isn’t usually the first thing that comes to mind. Actually, that image is kind of disturbing – shleppy Einstein hooking up with socialites and secretaries. Yikes.

But maybe Einstein was onto something there. In this month’s Atlanta Jewish Life, it was noted that in order to combat declining Jewish birthrates, it had been suggested by several people, including philathropist Michael Steinhardt that Jewish men take concubines and/or second wives. Maybe Einstein was simply ahead of his time? Of course Einstein’s first wife wasn’t Jewish and he didn’t have any kids with his Jewish second wife (maybe because she was also his 1st cousin?) or with any of his girlfriends, so who knows.

Feel free to read all about it in this article in the Boston Globe.

Well, at least for one guy…

No not the ass clown in the picture. He’s just a random dipshit attending an anti-Israel rally in Boston last Friday. Hang on. I need to catch my breath for a second because that “Victory for Hizballah” guy looks soooo scary. I’m sure that had this dude been amongst the Hizballah fighters in Maroun al-Ras, the village would not have fallen. Guess he couldn’t be there to help and still make his shift at the 7-11 on Harvard street in Brookline.

OK. I’m back. So yeah. Big rally in Boston. This guy Seva decides he’d like to videotape it for posterity. Some of the rally participants took umbrage with Seva’s videotaping, including one Noah Cohen, an often incoherent Jewish anti-Israel activist who thinks Noam Chomsky isn’t sufficiently anti-Zionist. Seva was jostled, threatened, pushed etc. Some woman with crazy eyes even grabbed his camera. It was complete mayhem. Anyhow, pics and eye opening video clips are availabe at Solomonia. This is well worth looking at, I promise.

Has anyone else had similar experiences at a rally? Oh and speaking of rallies, if you happen to be in uh… Hawaii tomorrow, there’s a rally in support of Israel Wed. evening at 7pm in Waikiki at the Gateway Park (intersection of Kalakaua Ave. and Kuhio). Send us pictures! Thanks to Haish Hagadol for the heads up.

The New York Times describes: At the De Prague Cafe in Beirut, it is possible to have a quiet beer and conversation. A few miles away, Israeli jets are leveling Shiite districts.

Four more soldiers were killed in the past day:

– Colonel Tzvi Loft, 42, of Hogla

– First Lieutenant Tom Farkash, 23, of Caesarea

– First Sergeant Kobi Smilag, 20, of Rehovot

– First Lieutenant Lotan Slavin, 21, of Hetzba

There is little information about them, but what there is tells of the pain of families losing their sons in war. Our hearts go out to them.

I was going to write something like this but thought that it would be too sad to write. The fact is that the commanding officer running this fight spoke to Ynet the other day and told them that now is not the time to question the IDF, that the time will come later. Considering the loss of lives of soldiers in recent days as well as the inept response to surprise attacks by known enemies, I would suggest that just as the IDF presumably learns from every encounter with the enemy, it must learn from its own failures, not only for the sake of its soldiers and Israel but also to ensure that Israel’s enemies understand that if there were weak spots in Israel’s defense, they have been patched up.

Senior IDF officers are not accustomed to criticism originating outside the army’s ranks, and normally enjoy great immunity from having to take responsibility for their failings. But there have been too many shortcomings and failures in recent weeks for them to be ignored. It is possible that this has been a matter of bad luck, but until the incidents are examined seriously by elements external to the IDF, there is an unpleasant feeling of a whitewash operation going on – and concern that something fundamentally bad is going on in the army.

Because what began at Kerem Shalom repeated itself on the Lebanese border: The IDF was again caught off guard, this time in a well-planned Hezbollah ambush. The intelligence failure and the complacency of the men in the patrol and of their officers had grave results. The entry of the tank into Lebanon, in an attempt to delay the escape of the kidnappers of the two soldiers, was also flawed. It is unclear why, at command levels, they did not anticipate that Hezbollah had laid mines to delay the advance of tanks. It also turned out that the tank in question lacked sufficient protection.

In the navy, too, the case of the destroyer struck by a Hezbollah missile is being investigated by naval officers. In this case, it does not matter what the findings will be. It was a very serious failure. The various versions of the incident that have been released by the IDF are puzzling and raise concerns about what is going on in the navy. “We didn’t know that the Hezbollah had this Iranian-made missile.” Or, “our defense systems were not operating because there were concerns that we would accidentally shoot at IAF aircraft.” Intelligence failure? Underestimating the enemy’s capabilities? Complacency? It appears to be a combination of all of the above.

Then there is the case of the Hezbollah position near Avivim. It is not clear how the planners of the operation to destroy the outpost lacked basic intelligence on Hezbollah’s deployment in the area, even though they had been under observation for a long period. Apparently, it turns out, no one was aware of the tunnels near the outpost, and no one anticipated that the Hezbollah fighters lay in ambush for the IDF force.

After that came the collision of two helicopters over Galilee. It is still unclear what caused it, but the resemblance to the helicopter disaster of February 1997 is overwhelming. An investigation over whether the lessons of that accident were ever adopted is vital.

And it should not be forgotten that all this is taking place when the IDF, the most powerful military force in the Middle East, is fighting against a guerrilla force of only several thousand fighters.

Despite the difficulties involved, we should not wait until the end of the fighting: A serious examination, by external elements, of this chain of failures is urgently needed. Indeed, it is critical, because events of recent weeks suggest a real problem in the ranks of the IDF.

I would add that they should also look into why it is that with two gazillion reporters around, they can’t say to people why the hell they are bombing areas. Without explication, it seems to others that this is a random range of attacks. If that is the case, then Israel is doing something contemptible which it should avoid – especially since this is what Hizbullah is doing – but if this is not the case, as many of us assume, then why not explain why certain parts of S. Beirut had to be attacked?

Okay, now I’m beginning to believe in that apocalypse stuff. It’s happening.

UN humanitarian chief accused Hizbullah of ‘cowardly blending’ among civilians

The U.N. humanitarian chief, returing from a visit to Beirut, accused Hizbullah on Monday of “cowardly blending” among Lebanese civilians and causing the deaths of hundreds.

“Consistently, from the Hizbullah heartland, my message was that Hizbullah must stop this cowardly blending … among women and children,” Egeland said, shortly before departing for Israel. “I heard they were proud because they lost very few fighters and that it was the civilians bearing the brunt of this. I don’t think anyone should be proud of having many more children and women dead than armed men.” (AP)

(07.24.06, 23:39)

At one point tonight, during my last night on the town, a friend turned to me and said, “is everyone you know here from the world of blogs?” I looked around, and more or less, the answer was yes.

What a long, strange trip it’s been. From meeting 40 people at an airport in New Jersey and whisking them through a whirlwind journey through Israel to being a part of amazing energy from the Jewish innovators of the future, from reuniting with old friends to making new ones from whom departure seems unnecessarily cruel, from bagels to limonana to felafel to hummus, from staying in hotels to staying on people’s couches, from extravagant lunches with business partners and friends to late nights at bars when no one looks at a watch, from sitting at the bar at Coffeeshop and scoring free mini-shakes from the bartender to spending time with family over Shabbat and at the zoo…it seems like this trip has been both surreal and going on for years. And moreover, it seems somewhat miraculous, considering the opportunity came to me through affiliation with a blog, a term I didn’t even know existed three years ago.

I have to thank Jewlicious, for having brought the gift of Israel (Jewlicious-style) to the Oranim 466ers, and for bringing me to be one of their guides. I have to thank Jewlicious for bringing me on board for ROI 120 and permitting me to feed off the energy of Jewish innovators. I have to thank Jewlicious for opening their homes to me and allowing me to live endlessly on couches and in spare beds.

I have to thank so many others, too. And I hope that someday I will find the words and have the opportunity to express my gratitude. But for now, I must board a plane.

Until then, I wish you safety, happiness, and all the (good) hummus you can eat, preferably with fresh pitot from the shuk.

Next beer in Jerusalem.